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Sedans Chevrolet Malibu Chevrolet Malibu MPG-Real World Numbers
295 messages, Last post on Dec 06, 2009 at 5:54 AM
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Replying to: gdubya2 (Jan 03, 2007 2:08 am) I've been wondering about your results for that upcoming trip '"up north" in Manistee' (see post #100). Glad to hear from you and read your report with great interest. ,-- You=gdubya2 [ Jan 03, 2007 (2:08 am) ] | | Just an update on my experiences over the past 11 months with my | 2006 LS sedan... I've averaged 30.177 mpg during those miles with a | high of 40.12 mpg and a low of 23.38 mpg. I live in a suburban | community so most of my driving is not stop and go city stuff. Since you talk here about more than the fuel economy, I will also give a more or less comprehensive account of my experience with my two Malibus -- it is especially appropriate now, since the second one just turned one year of the ownership. [ Both cars are Malibu 2005, Base Sedan, with slightly different options ] I bought the first one in May 2005, right after checking it out by accident at a dealership -- just left my six-year old Bonneville there and drove off the lot in the new car. (Some surprise for the family later that day...  By the end of year 2005, we (the family) knew that that spontaneous purchase was a wise one -- Malibu had been really good to us, the amazing fuel economy included. And (every owner will know it) -- what a comfortable and practical car!... So, comes the end of 2005, I am in love with my Bu and so on December 30th, when amazingly good deals can be made, I go to take a look at another dealer's lot and... the next thing I know, I call my wife -- "Hey, I am at a dealership... I just bought another car... We'll talk later..." Mind you -- I am the only driver in the family at that stage... And so it happened that on January 3rd, 2006, there turned out to be two white Malibu's in my driveway, and every morning I needed to make a tough decision which one to drive... Thankfully, in the summer my daughter got the license and it became easier to make the choice. (In honesty, I bought the second car because I knew she'd need one within a year and after casually looking at some alternatives, including Cobalt, I didn't want anything but a Malibu for her. And I didn't want anything else for myself, either.) Here are the numbers for the cars (both are normally driven "more city than highway"): +---------------------+-------+-------+-------+ |---------------------| Bu1 --| Bu2 --| Bu2* -| +---------------------+-------+-------+-------+ | Odometer (miles) ---| 13664 | 13658 | 10917 | | Speed avg (mph) ----| 22 -- | 28 ---| 27 ---| | Speed high (mph) ---| 30 -- | 59 ---| 49 ---| | Economy low (mpg) --| 20.8 -| 21.0 -| 21.0 -| | Economy high (mpg) -| 29.2 -| 36.3 -| 34.0 -| +---------------------+-------+-------+-------+ Why three columns for two cars? Because I wanted to exclude the largest distorting factor -- the June 2006 round-trip of 2741 miles, which was all highway (although in suboptimal conditions -- see my June postings). So the "Bu2*" columns is calculated with that trip excluded. The average and high speed in the table should give you the idea of my driving patterns. The table above is produced on the basis of the numbers I collect after each fill-up. Speed numbers are taken off the DIC, of course, with zeroing the reading after the read. Economy is calculated as "miles driven divided by gasoline purchased" -- the information shown by DIC is always way too optimistic (up to two MPG). | I have done one oil change myself, using Mobil One, and have had the | tires rotated. That's it - no recalls, no warranty work, nothing! I | absolutly could not be happier with any other car. I change oil to synthetic (Mobil One or Castrol Syntec) myself, at about 7500 miles passed. And I rotate the tires myself, too, also keeping my eye on the proper inflation. No recalls in my history, either. I had two very minor things taken care of under the warranty: * Bu1 had a rubber hit protector on the trunk arm fallen out -- the rubber was defective originally. * Bu2 had a slight scratching noise at low speeds (while cold) in a front wheel. It turned out to be the wheel bearing defect -- the dealer replaced it and all has been well since then. The total of time I spent at the dealership (not counting the purchases, obviously) is under one day -- i.e. for both cars together. | I think it is such a great automobile for the money and would not | hesitate for a second in recommending it to anyone. And so would I... Various people would want various things in their car, of course. We all want at least some minimum set of options. I know the value of ABS, for example, and want it in my car. The remote starter is a convenience which I appreciate more and more, but probably could live without (oh, wait... maybe not...) But apart from the minimum set of features, I want just two things in my cars: * Fuel economy. * Reliability and the minimum maintenance cost and effort. I hated spending hours at the dealer before I got my Bu1. I don't want to do that ever again. In this respect (as in all others, in fact), after more than 27,000 miles combined in my cars, I couldn't be happier about them. (Thank you Chevy, again!) | I have seen the photos of the 2008 Malibu and intend to go to the | North American Auto Show in Detroit in a couple of weeks to take a | look at it first hand. I am a little concerned that the new styling | has lowered the roof heigth and will make getting in and out of the | car more difficult - something I really do not like about my wife's | Buick LaCrosse. I saw the photos as well, did like what I saw but have the same concerns. This car is *practical*. I love the space over my head, the ease of getting in and out, knowing that all the passengers are extra comfortable, and wouldn't change this practicality and comfort for the smoother roof lines. (I know what you mean talking about LaCrosse... And did you try the latest Pontiacs -- G6 and GrandPrix?... I don't think I'd enjoy riding in their back seats...) Some people find the current Malibu's design a disaster (see the "2008" discussion). That's fine with me -- I don't need other people to love my car. I am inside and I like what I see and what I feel. But I also noticed that my eye sort of has trained on Malibu's shapes over the time. When I see it -- the sedan or Maxx -- on the road, my heart jumps with joy -- it's such a neat car. When I walk around my cars, I find them beautiful. And hey, they are -- it appears that most of the photos of the current Malibus are taken from some ridiculous angles, ruining the image of the car -- the car "alive" makes quite a different impression on me than the pictures I usually see. Anyway, best wishes to Chevy and all us Malibu owners -- and thank you for listening!
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Replying to: malexbu (Jan 07, 2007 2:56 pm) |
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My wife drives a 2004 Malbiu with V6. Purchased new in NOv 03. Today the car has 57,744 total miles and pumped 2,108.26 gallons od gas. Average 26.9 mpg with average fuel cost of $2.03 per gallon. Average speed is in low 40's
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Replying to: kpugh2 (Jan 18, 2007 9:02 am)
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| I did not see any posts by a fellow owner of the 2006 SS model. I wanted to know why so few people by the 3.9L V6. It is simply a better engine, more power, fine fuel economy at highway speeds, and it is smoother and quieter than any other available engine. Acceleration at any speed seems effortless with 90% of the 240 lb x ft of torque available from 2200 to 6000 rpm. It will probably have a longer life too due to the fact that it does not have to work too hard. The SS model also offers a ton of standard equipment at a far more affordable price than a Camry or an Accord. When I was looking at Malibu's I felt that the SS while not the cheapest, was by far the best deal. I got mine with a sun roof from just over 21k (haggled down). | |
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Replying to: csandste (Jan 18, 2007 10:36 am)
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One (of two) problems with the Maxx SS is not the engine, which is definitely a nicer motor than what's in the rest of the Malibu line. It's the 4 speed transmission, which Chevy decided to regear with a very steep final drive ratio for the Maxx SS. Result is the motor's all wound up during freeway driving and the car uses way more fuel than it should. The other problem is the big wheel diameter, which hurts maneuverability as well as ride quality. The Malibu SS, apparently, is geared the same as the regular Maxx line. That combination seems to work much better. |
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Replying to: gohtraw (Feb 05, 2007 8:13 pm) They work well, they're simple, they get fantastic gas mileage, cheap to fix, very reliable, quiet. I guess all they can say bad about them is that they are an old design, which is true but not necessarily bad. Come on over, put in your two cents.
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Replying to: shadow5599 (Mar 27, 2007 9:22 am) |
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Maybe someone can help me. I own a 2007 Malibu Maxx LT V6, it has 4,000 miles on it and has had one oil change. I understand the car may still be breaking in but up to this point the best I have seen the car get is 19.9 mpg. The mileage is usually between 17-19mpg, this is a pretty even mix of around town and high way with maybe slightly more around town. It seems most people I talk to or read about get much better mileage than I do. On a recent 160 mile trip at 70-75 the whole way I averaged about 21.3. I have used the computer on the car and calculated trip mileage/gallons used, the results are usually identical. Is there something I can do? I have contacted the dealer and they seem puzzled/unwilling to help.
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